Wire-lacing apparatus



July 27, 1943. o F. ARTHUR WIRE LACING APPARATUS 'Filed Oct. 13; 1942 3 Sheets-Shget 1 INVENTdR M 97 MM July 27, 1943. 0. F. ARTHUR WIRE LACING APPARATUS Filed Oct. 15 1942 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVEIiTOR Q album/z, v

O F. ARTHUR WIRE LAC ING APPARATUS Filed 001:. 13 1942 3 Sheets-Sheet I5 Patented July 27, 1943' -LINETED STATES UFFICE I 2,325,4sr"

WIRE-LACING seraaatrns OscarF Arthur, Belle Vernon, [application October 13, 1942, Seriai NadfiLS'lZ oi t +s jfl My. invention relates to Wire lacing apparatus andmore particularly to a machine' for use in forming Wire mesh panels disclosed in my application Serial No.i37,989, filed April 7, 1942 (now Patent 15,180, issued March 30, 1943), although the apparatuscan be used in'performing lacing oper for other purposes.

One object of my invention is to'provide apparatus of such form that a connection can readiiy' he made between the wires of a mesh and a plate or marginal har. e

Another o'oject of my invention is to provide an improved means for properly spacing the pro truding wires of a mesh structure and aligning them relative to one another and to a member to which they are to be connected. v

'In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective View of the machine; Fig.2 is a perspective View showing in' disassembled relation the parts which are to be joined'together; Fig. 3 is a plan View of a portion of a. completed mesh panel structure; Fig. 4 is an end view of themachine of Fig. l, partly in section; Fig. 5 is a pla view thereof, and Fig. 6 is a front view ofthe ma; chine.

Referring first to Figs; 2 and 3, the parts to be assembled comprise a mesh 1, only one end of which is shown; a perforated plate 8 and a lacing rod or Wire s. The mesh sheet has projecting strand portions 58 With bends I I formed therein in any suitable or Convenient manner; as by pressing dies or rolling, it being understood that.- at the oppositeedge of thesheet thestrands can project in a similar manner for. connection to an.-.

other perforated plate. The machine positions or aligns the projecting portions 10 in properly spaced relation; so that the bends I I will readily enter the slots E2 inithe plate 8, and be .pro

j ec'te'd therethrough to permit the insertion'of the lacing Wire 9. V

flhe n chine has a frameworhthat" comprises horizontally extending frame members 14 that will besupported upon a suitable base; and up A cylinder 22 is rigidly secured in theirar'ne Work and contains a piston 23 whose 'rod 24j is connected to the cross head 29, so that as the flow from the .e pipe and an exhaust pipe 33;

i6,-the-springs 25 serving to raise the cross-head when fluid is exhausted from the upper side" of the piston 23. A breather opening 26 is pro vided inthe lower part of the cylinder to permit unrestricted operation of the'piston. A drain pipe fil is provided forreceiving oil that leaksp'ast the piston and for conductingit' to a point at'which it can he collected, Where oil is used as the'motive fluid.

- Fluid pressure is admitted from a supply line 29, past a'valvefiei and to a pipe 3| leading into the'upper end of the'cylinder 22, to force the piS-' ton down. At thecoznpletion of such a movement, the valve handle is turned to shutoff re line-28 and efiect connec tion betweent 7 so that the springs 25 Will raise the piston and the cross-head. e l

Thecross-headcarries a pair of angular hQlding' members and forwardly thereof it pivotally supports a pair of gripping members or fingers 35. The fingers are yieldably urged toward the n ernbersdd by springs 36' that are contained within tubular casings 3?, so that they will grip the edges of the bar 3 to hold it in place beneath the cross-head, as indicated in Fig. 4. The bar will be inserted by pressing its forward edge against the rear aces or" the fingers and pushing said fingers. outwardly far enough to let the rear edge of the banenter the angular holding members 34.

the being, thereby frictionally held. A series V ofbosses 38 are secured to the underside of the cross-head 29 and have grooves 39 formed there iniFig. 4) to receive thehends H of the strands. Thesebosses'are so arranged that each curved recess Will lie directly above ne'of the slots E2 in the plate 2, so that the recesses will be in position to receive the bends'ii' when they are inserted through the slots. The forward 7 and rear edges of these posses will be engaged by the unperforated eds-e portions of the plate.

u'An anvil is supported on the frame memhers and carries a series of aligning fingers 52 that are beveled at their upper ends so as to facilitate the'placing of the projecting portions Iii of the strands between the fingers by vertically downward movement of "he mesh upon the anvil. The mesh can be placed on the anvil m'an u'ally when the cross-head 2% is in raised position.

piston moves down, the cross-headiwill be moved down against the tension of sp'rings2'5 that con:

nect the ends of the cross-head with the top 'bar As shovvnin Fig. 5, there'will be one wire in each assp'ring seats and guides for bolts or rods' 44 that extend through springs 45 and attheir upper ends support a bar 46 which carries a series of guide fingers M. The springs yieldably support the bar 46 and its fingers in raised position, but a downward thrust upon the bar will compress the springs and move the rods 54 downwardly. The heads of these rods limit the upward movement of the bar 36. In the bar 8 the web elements 49 that constitute unperforated areas between the slots i2 overlie the guide fingers H, so that when the cross-head 28 is lowered, these elements id will push the guide fingers and the cross-bar it downwardly against the pressure of the springs 45, until the upper ends of the fingers are approximately flush with the top surface of the anvil ii.

In the operation of the apparatus, the bar 8 properly, including the alignment of the bends H with the slots E2. The cross-head 26 is then moved downwardly by the piston, to its dotted line'position (Fig. 4). During such movement theslots i2 will receive the bends H and at the same time the fingers 4 will be pushed to retracted position as above explained, by the web elements 19 on the plate 8. The bends are thus maintained in their previously aligned positions, since the guidefingers 41 do not pass out of engagement with the sides thereof until the bends are entering the slots i2 of the plate. The side. walls of theseslots therefore retain the bends in their upright positions for the reception of the lacing wire 9. Whilethe parts occupy these positions, with the bends lying in the curved recesses'fls on the cross-head, the lacing wire 9 will he slid into place between the upper side of the plate Bend the bends ll, thus connecting the mesh to the plate. Thereupon pressure will be exhausted from the upper side of the piston 23, allowing the springs to raise the anvil. During this raising'movement, the holders 34-35 will be stripped from engagement with the edges of the plate 8. The mesh and the plate can then belifted clear of the fingers 42 and ll. The mesh at its other end can be connected 7 in a similar manner to another plate 8, or a mahas a row of laterally-spaced bends formed therein for insertion into the plate apertures, comprising a surface for supporting the mesh adjacent to the opened sides of said bends, guide fingers spaced apart at said surface, for the reception of said bends between them, and means for yieldably holding the fingers in said position,

the said means being so arranged that when the plate is moved toward the said surface, with its apertures in alignment with the said bends, the unapertured areasoi the plate will push thefingers to retracted position, and the bends will be moved through the plate apertures a sufficient distance to accommodate a lacing wire between said bends and the adjacent side of the plate 2. Apparatus for making a laced connection between an apertured plate and a wire mesh that has a row of laterally-aligned bends formed therein for insertion into the plate apertures, comprising means for supporting said bends in position to pass through the plate apertures, when the plate is moved toward the mesh, whereby a lacing wire can be inserted between the bends and the adjacent side of the plate, the said means including guide fingers for directing misaligned bends into parallel planes when the mesh is brought into engagement therewith, and means for moving the guide fingers to retracted positions when the plate is brought into such position that its apertures will receive the said bends.

3. Apparatus for making a laced connection between. an apertured plate and a wire mesh that has projecting strand portions with bends formed therein for insertion into said apertures, comprising a row of laterally-spaced aligning fingers spaced apart for the reception between them of the projecting portions of the strands, a row of laterally-spaced guide fingers each normally located opposite to one of the aligning fingers, means for yieldably holding the guide fingers in their said opposite positions and positioned to receive the said bends, a holder for the plate, and curved recesses in the holder, which are positioned to receive the said bends when they are pushed through the slots in the plate, those plate areas between the slots serving to push the guide fingers to retracted position when the holder is movedtoward the ends of the guide fingers, whereby such fingers will be pushed clear of the bends.

.4. Apparatus for making a laced connection between an apertured plate and a wire mesh that has projecting strand portions with bends formed therein for insertion into said apertures, comprising a row of laterallyespaced guide fingers, means for yieldably holding the guide fingers in a projected position and positioned to receive the said bends, a holder for the plate, and curved recesses in the holder, which are positioned to receive the a said bends when they are pushed through the slots in thev plate, those plate areas between the slots serving to push the guide fingers to retracted position when the holder is moved toward the ends of the guide fingers, whereby such fingers will be pushed clear of the bends.

5. Apparatus for making a laced connection between an apertured plate and a wire mesh that has projecting strand portions with bends formed therein for insertion into said apertures,

' comprising an anvil surface, a row oilaterallyspaced guide fingers projecting upwardly from said surface, means for yieldably holding the fin gers in their upwardlyprojected positions to reeeive the said bends between them, and a crosshead for releasably supporting the plate in such position that its apertures are directly above the said fingers, the cross-head being movable toward the said anvil to push the fingers to retracted position and effect ,entry of the said bends through the apertures.

6. Apparatus for making a laced connection between an apertured-plate and a wire me h that has projecting strand portions with bends formed therein for insertion into said apertures, comprising an anvil surface, a row of laterallyspaced guide fingers projecting upwardly from said surface, means ior' yieldably holding the fingers in their upwardly projected positions to receive the'said bends between them, and a crosshead for releasably supporting the plate in such position that its apertures are directly above the said fingers, the cross-head being movable toward the said anvil to push the fingers to retracted position and effect entry of the said bends through the apertures, and the cross-head having recessed elements thereunder, curved to aconto-ur approximating the shape of the bends.

'7. Apparatus for making a laced connection between an apertured plate and a wire mesh that has a row of laterally-spaced bends formed therein for insertion into the plate apertures, comprising a surface for supporting the mesh adjacent to the open sides of said bends, a member having means thereon for releasably supporting the plate, means for moving the member perpendicularly to the plane of the mesh and to a position against the same Where the said bends project through the plate apertures, the plate being removable from the said member when the plate is held in position on the mesh.

8. Apparatus for making a laced connection between an apertured plate and a Wire mesh that has a row of laterally-spaced bends formed therein for insertion 'into the plate apertures, comprising a surface for supporting the mesh ad- J'acent to the open sides of said bends, a member having means thereon for releasably supporting the plate, means for moving the member perpendicularly to the plane of the mesh and to a position against the same where the said bends project through the plate apertures, the releasable connection between the plate and its sup porting member being automatically broken upon Withdrawal movement of said member when the plate is held in position on the mesh.

OSCAR F. ARTHUR 

